Troughing roller assemblies



Aug. 10, 1965 H. E. SMITH 3,199,661

TROUGHING ROLLER ASSEMBLIES Filed Dec. 27, 1961 I $1? mgg INVENTOR.

Altar/1gp.

United States Patent huh 3,199,661 TRGUGHWG ROLLER ASSEMBLIES) Herman E. Smith, Park Forest, ll!., assignor to Goodman Manufacturing Company, Chicago, ill., a corporation of Iliinois Filed Dec. 27, 1961, Ser. No. 162,418 4 Claims. (Cl. 198-192) This invention relates to a troughing idler assembly, in particular, to a tiltable troughing idler assembly for wire rope sideframe conveyors.

An object of this invention is to provide a tiltable troughing idler assembly.

Another object is to provide a troughing idler assembly which tilts by responding to longitudinal forces.

Another object is a tiltable troughing idler assembly wherein the elongated connectors have means to tilt the 1assembly downstream upon the impact of a longitudinal orce.

Another object is a tiltable troughing idler assembly of simple construction which can be easily assembled and disassembled.

Another object is a tiltable troughing idler assembly which uses a rocking motion of the elongated connectors to tilt downstream in response to a longitudinal impact.

Another object is a tiltable troughing idler assembly which can tilt downstream and can tilt upstream when the direction of a conveyor belt is reversed.

Another object is an elongated connector adapted to rock in response to a longitudinal impact.

The foregoing objects and other objects which will become apparent from time to time are now realized by the invention which will be described in detail and which is illustrated in the attached drawings wherein;

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the troughing idler assembly,

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary side view partially in cross section, and

FIGURE 3 is an end view partially in cross section.

A series of troughing idler assemblies of the type shown in FIGURE 1 are a part of a wire rope sideframe conveyor, and are supported from spaced parallel wire ropes. The conveyor system is generally provided with spaced upright supports for the wire ropes, return rollers positioned below troughing idler assemblies, and an endless conveyor belt which has a conveying reach riding on the troughing idler assembly and a return reach carried by the return rollers. The upright standards or supports, the return roller, the endless conveyor belt and other components of a wire rope sideframe conveyor are not shown or described in detail because they do not comprise an essential part of the invention.

The troughing idler assembly of FIGURE 1 has a crosspiece which extends to the elongated connectors generally shown as 16. These elongated connectors are shown engaged on wire ropes 11. Associated with the crosspiece are a plurality of idler rollers, such as Wing rollers at and a center roller 9, which are joined to the crosspiece by supporting arms such as 12, 13 and 14. The upright supporting arm 12 is shown as closing the end of the crosspiece and, at such a point, the arm 12 may be fixed to the elongated connector by Welding such as at 7 and 8. Other equivalent means may be used for fixing the crosspiece 10 and supporting arm 12 to the elongated connector 16.

The elongated connector 16 has a generally upright wall 19 continuous with a generally curved rope seat 20 and a lower flange 21. A clamp 18 coacts and engages the underside of the wire rope by a curved member 26 shaped to fit the underside of the wire rope. The clamp 18 also has a flange 28 which cooperates with the flange 21 immediately above it to receive a screw 29. The screw presses against the curved portion 26 to tightly engage or clamp the wire rope 11 in the elongated connector 16.

The curved rope seat 20 of the elongated connector has extending parts which flare slightly upwards as at 25 and 26 from the wire rope 11. The curved rope seat 20 is so designed that when the elongated connector 16 is firmly clamped to the wire rope 11, a center part of the rope seat 20 is in contact with the wire rope 11 as at 27 and the extending parts are out of contact with the wire ropes. The original or normal position for the troughing idler assembly is that just described, that is, the center part of the curved member is in contact with the wire rope and the flaring walls of the extended parts are about equally out of contact with said wire rope.

The force of the clamp 18 and the elongated connector 16 against the wire rope tends to maintain or continue a central or original position when moderate loads contact the troughing idler assembly. A heavy impact on the assembly, particularly a longitudinal impact from an overlying load will cause the troughing idler assembly to ride or-give with such load. Such a load will overcome the force which maintains the elongated connector and clamp in a central position and cause an extending part to tilt in a downstream direction and thereby make contact with the wire rope as at 26. At such a time, the other extending member will be displaced even further from the Wire rope as at 25. This is shown in FIG- URE 3 wherein the arrow indicates downstream direction and where one extending member is shown approaching contact with the wire rope and the other-extending member is shown further out of contact with the wire rope.

The use and operation of my invention are as follows:

A troughing idler assembly in a conveyor system is subject'to great forces when an overlying load makes contact with the assembly. A non-yielding assembly takes greater punishment which may result in serious damage to the assembly or early breakdown of the assembly.

The troughing idler assembly described herein is easily assembled in a conveyor system because the opposed elongated connectors, the crosspiece and the various supporting arms for the idler rollers preferably comprise one unitary section. Such a section is placed between spaced wire ropes, and the clamps 18 are then placed against the underside of the wire ropes. A screw 29 is inserted and pressed against the curved member 26 of the clamp 13 until the elongated connector is tightly engaged in a central position on the wire ropes. In the assembled central position, the curved rope seat 20 of the elongated connector has a center part which is in contact with the wire rope and extending parts on each side which are out of contact with the wire rope. The extending parts flare slightly upwards from the wire rope as at 25 and 26. An overlying load riding on the endless conveyor belt will hit or contact the troughing idler assembly and impart a longitudinal force on said assembly. Such a longitudinal impact will result in a reduced stress to the assembly because the assembly will ride or give with such an impact. When the impact is of suflicient magnitude to overcome the normal central position, one of the extending curved parts of the elongated connector, sa the part at 26 in the downstream direction, will move towards the wire rope and tend to make contact with said wire rope. It is thus seen that with a suflicient longitudinal impact, one of the extending curved parts or flaring walls will tend to rock into contact with the wire rope.

It is also provided that the troughing idler assembly can give or ride with an impact in a reverse direction or upstream. When the direction of the conveyor belt is reversed, the other extending part of the curved rope seat 20, which is normally out of contact with the wire rope as at 25, will close the gap between the flaring wall and the side rope and tend to make contact with said side rope.

It will be apparent that a wide variety of crosspieces and idler roller placements may be designed in the practice of this invention. Such crosspieces, with other associated idler rollers, extend to and are joined to the elongated connectors engaging the wire ropes. The elongated connectors disclosed herein will hold the troughing idler assembly in a normal or central position under moderate overlying loads but will tilt or rock downstream or upstream, as the case may be, when the overlying load is of greater magnitude.

The foregoing invention can now be practiced by those skilled in the art. Such skilled persons will know that the invention is not necessarily restricted to the particular embodiments presented herein. The scope of the invention is to be defined by the terms of the following claims as given meaning by the preceding description.

I claim: 1. A wire rope sideframe conveyor which includes,

in combination,

generally parallel and spaced wire ropes,

a pair of spaced connectors engaging the wire ropes,

a crosspiece extending to said wire ropes,

a plurality of idler rollers joined to the crosspiece, the ends of the crosspiece connected to the connectors which engage the Wire ropes,

each connector having an elongated inverted U-shaped member which engages the top of the rope, a clamp associated with the U-shaped member to engage the bottom of the rope and securely hold the connector to the rope, said clamp being of minor dimensions relative to said U-shaped member, a longitudinal central portion of the U'-shaped member clamped to the top of the rope, a downstream portion flaring away from the rope, and an upstream portion likewise flaring away from the rope,

whereby an impact on the idler rollers will tilt a. flaring portion of the U-shaped member into contact with the wire rope.

2. A wire rope side frame conveyor which includes,

in combination,

generally parallel and spaced wire ropes,

a pair of spaced connectors engaging the Wire ropes,

a crosspiece extending to said wire ropes,

idler rollers spaced downstream and upstream of the crosspiece in balancing relationship,

the ends of the crosspiece fixed to the connectors which engage the wire ropes,

each connector having an elongated inverted U-shaped member which engages the top of the rope, a clamp associated with the U-shaped member to engage the bottom of the rope and securely hold the connector to the rope, said clamp being of minor dimensions relative to said U-shaped member, a longitudinal central portion of the U-shaped member clamped to the top of the rope, a downstream portion flaring away from the rope, and an upstream portion likewise flaring away from the rope,

whereby an impact on the idler rollers will tilt a flaring portion of the U-shaped member into contact with the wire rope.

3. A tilting assembly for a wire rope sideframe conveyor with spaced wire ropes which includes, in combination,

a pair of connectors adapted to engage each of the pair of spaced wire ropes,

a crosspiece extending and fixed to each of the connectors,

each connector having an inverted elongated U-shaped member adapted to engage the top of the rope, a clamp associated with the U-shaped member adapted to engage the bottom of the rope and adapted to securely hold the connector to the rope, said clamp being of minor dimensions relative to said U-shaped member, a longitudinal central portion of the U- shaped member adapted to be clamped to the top of the rope, a downstream portion adapted to flare away from the rope, and an upstream portion likewise adapted to flare away from the rop,

whereby an impact will tilt a flaring portion of the U- shaped member into contact with the wire rope.

4. A wire rope sideframe conveyor Which includes, in combination,

generally parallel and spaced wire ropes, a pair of spaced connectors engaging the wire ropes,

a crosspiece extending to said wire ropes, the ends of the crosspiece connected to the connectors which engage the wire ropes,

a plurality of idler rollers joined to the crosspiece upstream and downstream in balancing relationship, at least one roller having its shaft in a vertical plane spaced downstream of the crosspiece,

at least one roller having its shaft in a vertical plane upstream of the connector,

each connector clamped in a vertical plane passing generally through the center of the connector and intermediate the planes passing through the shafts of the idler rollers,

each connector having an elongated inverted U-shaped member which engages the top of the rope, a clamp associated with the U-shaped member to engage the bottom of the rope and securely hold the connector to the rope, said clamp being of minor dimensions relative to said U-shaped member, a longitudinal central portion of the U-shaped member clamped to the top of the rope, a downstream portion flaring away from the rope, and an upstream portion likewise flaring away from the rope,

whereby an impact on the idler rollers will tilt a flaring portion of the U-shaped member into contact with the wire rope.

References Qited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,179,186 11/39 Kendall 198-202 3,010,567 11/61 L0 Presti 198-192 FOREIGN PATENTS 876,827 5/53 Germany.

SAMUEL F. COLEMAN, Primary Examiner.

JULIUS E. WEST, WILLIAM B. LA BORDE,

Examiners. 

1. A WIRE ROPE SIDEFRAME CONVEYOR WHICH INCLUDES, IN COMBINATION, GENERALLY PARALLE AND SPACED WIRE ROPES, A PAIR OF SPACED CONNECTORS ENGAGING THE WIRE ROPES, A CROSSPIECE EXTENDING TO SAID WIRE ROPES, A PLURALITY OF IDLER ROLLERS JOINED TO THE CROSSPIECE, THE ENDS OF THE CROSSPIECE CONNECTED TO THE CONNECTORS WHICH ENGAGE THE WIRE ROPES, EACH CONNECTOR HAVING AN ELONGATED INVERTED U-SHAPED MEMBER WHICH ENGAGES THE TOP OFTHE ROPE, A CLAMP ASSOCIATED WITH THE U-SHAPED MEMBER TO ENGAGE THE BOTTOM OF THE ROPE AND SECURELY HOLD THE CONNECTOR TO THE ROPE, SAID CLAMP BEING OF MINOR DIMENSIONS RELATIVE TO SAID U-SHAPED MEMBER, A LONGITUDINAL CENTRAL PORTION OF THE U-SHAPED MEMBER CLAMPED TO THE TOP OF THE ROPE, A DOWNSTREAM PORTION FLARING AWAY FROM THE ROPE, AND AN UPSTREAM PORTION LIKEWISE FLARING AWAY FROM THE ROPE, WHEREBY AN IMPACT ON THE IDLER ROLLERS WILL TILT A FLARING PORTION OF THE U-SHAPED MEMBER INTO CONTACT WITH THE WIRE ROPE. 